Sensitive wide range altimeter



Sept. 21, 1954 w. ANGST SENSITIVE WIDE RANGE ALTIMETER 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 15, 1950 INVEN TOR.

Sept. 21, 1954 w. ANGST 2,6

SENSITIVE WIDE RANGE ALTIMETER Filed'April 15, 1950 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 g 4 mmvrox.

Walter Angsz BY Sept. 21, 1954 w. ANGST 2,689,480

SENSITIVE WIDE RANGE ALTIMETER Filed April 15, 1950 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Fig. 6 INVENTOR.

" ATTORNEY Walter Angsz Sept. 21, 1954 w ANGST 2,689,480

SENSITIVE WIDE RANGE ALTIMETER Filed April 15, 1950 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 68 66 as I 8 Fig. 7

INVENTOR. Walzer Angst BY Haw '5. M

ATTOQNEY Patented Sept. 21, 1954 SENSITIVE WIDE RANGE ALTIMETER Walter Angst, Manhasset, N. Y., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Kollsman Instrument Corporation, Elmhurst, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application April 15, 1950, Serial No. 156,197

(or. 'zs 3s7 6 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in altimeters of the type operating on the air pressure principle.

The development of aircraft operable at high altitudes has led to a demand for an altitude responsive device, particularly an indicating altimeter, capable of responding with great accuracy to" changes in altitude withinthe greatly extended range of from zero to eighty thousand feet and beyond.

Whilethere are altimeters in existence which meet exacting requirements of accuracy within limited altitude ranges, for example, the range up to twenty or thirty thousand feet, the construction of an instrument covering a much wider range presents particular difficulties which are not met by mere changes in the dimensions of the conventional instrument and of its component parts; A development along conventional lines of the conventional sensitive altimeter to increase its range meets with little success becauseof limitations inherent in the conventional design. M g

A conventionalsensitive altimeter of limited range usually incorporates two pointers. A high altitude altimeter covering the range of, say, up to eighty thousand feet or one hundred thousand feet, requires at'least one additional pointer or indicator, whereby the load on the diaphragm is correspondingly increased. Also it"must be considered that with increasing altitude the pressur difference per revolution of any on pointer becomes progressively less. For thisreason less poweris available for moving, a pointer through a certain angle athigh altitudes than at low altitudes.

Anincrease in the size or in the number of the" diaphragm capsules to provide for increased power leads to diificulties because it brings with it the necessity of balancing larger masses. There are now in use counterweights for balancing the diaphragm capsules and their associated mechanism. Such counterweights are satisfactory only if their movements are restricted to relatively small angular displacements about a fulcrum. It is common practice in this connection to mount such counterweights by means of a flexible fiat spring whose tension also serves to eliminat lost motion in the mechanism. An increase in the mass of the balancing weight and the use of a more powerful flat spring leads to undesirably large dimensions of the instruments, leads to.

mechanism on the various pivots. It thus becomes evident that the advantage of a more powerful actuating mechanism is largelylost because of a nearly proportional increase in frictional losses and because of mounting compensation difficulties which are all the more serious since the temperature range within. which the instrument is used is also greatly increased.

The present invention involves a distinct de-- parture from the conventional construction of altimeters which, as will be apparent from the following description, leads to an elimination of the problems encountered in the mass-balancing of the conventional altimeters and furthermore results in an instrument of compact design and surprisingly small dimensions.

In the improved instruments two pressure responsive units are arranged in such a way that tration, a preferred embodiment of the invention.

The invention also consists in certain new and original features of construction and combination of elements hereinafter set forth and claimed.

Although the characteristic features of this invention which are believed to be novel will be particularly pointed out in th claims appended hereto, the invention itself, its objects and advantages, and the manner in which it may be carried out may be better understood by referring to the followin description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part of it in which;

Figure 1 is a cross sectional view through an altimeter incorporating the present invention, the dial and pointer being omitted for the sake of clearness; a

Figure 2 is a transverse section through the instrumentmechanism shown in Figure 1, the section being taken on line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Figure 1 Figure 5 is a detailed view of the rocking shaft and sector assembly, the view being taken on line 55 of Figure 2;

Figure 6 is a front view of the instrument; and

Figure 7 is a perspective exploded view illus- The pin is held in a boss I45 and is clamped trating the pointer mechanism and the zero settherein by a set screw I46. ting device of the instrument of Figure 1. The illustrated compensator permits manual In the following description and in the claims and automatic adjustment of the lever arm various details will be identified by specific names at which t he link I29 engages the rocking shaft for convenience. The names, however, are in- After loosening of the set screw I4 the tended to be as generic in their application as the of a the" leve'r fiarm inf ayf be frianil'alli' inart will permit. Corresponding reference cha creased or decreased for calibration purposes actors refer to corresponding parts in the several hy imoving th p t 138 further away from, or figuresof the drawings. closer towards, the rocking shaft, Whereafter t. I t drawin s a mp y gi a 'd f fii e" the'set "s'cr'e'w I42 'is tightened. p r O s s i ca i v i Q Changes in temperature cause the bimetallic closure of the invention is madeforlthapur gihbeijpj j ljm t position shown t pose o explanation of de ias e s lit e: bimetallic member .tends to increase and deinvention, but it is UDdSI'StOOd that the decrease in on temperature the eftails ay be d fi in us r sp ts it fective length of the lever arm at which the out d p t r rom t bro d p 'e t link I29 acts'on' the'rccking shaft. The influinvention and that the invention y v D- ence'of 'the'bimetallic member I34 may be lesplied to other structures than the ones shown. sened b turning its supporting arm I 1 he Pr s ur ,ET PQ iY m q is fi @92 tively t th ost I38 after loosening of the altimeter is enclosed in a pressure tight 1}O U .S-, t; screw [3 9 I p H J i M mg i a nf l ,iiii b v rent W 1. Referring now to Figure 3, it is seen that. 1 hin Wh h s z re wi w. I i r the"twoj gea' sectors: 3.3 and 133 mesh witha suretight y un bye i l4 hepinijon"4'I. oh arsha'ft 43 supported in hearings usi ha a b ng Him th e l 49 and (Figure 1).; .The shaft 43 carries for connection of the instrument to a static large' gear 5] meshing with a pinion;52.;on' p e nep M o w I c ashaft 53 extendingthroughthe plate I9.'(Figure h i str m n me a includes a mq 1) .Theshaft 153 carries .on'it afurthe'r pinion esunnefl h. ay be nj ly. of 5.4 and a large gear which meshes :with a individual plates l l and 29 dly inter- 3O pinion"5'6 "on""a hand-staffffil' Theiharid stafi" connected by Studs and I' W Z2.. The in: is mo'unted'in 'b'earingsf'58 and/59 and""c'arrisf strumentsupperi has a central bracket 30. the large handor ointer'eo (Fi'g'urefYL 'A hai' whi h a st of d phra m p u 24 is s rin s! is rovide'd'ior'the' 'ur oseoi elifii mounted.-

. i r inatiiig"play'andilost'motion'in the gear'mebh" According to the invention'the stack of 'dia' i ym The h ir-"s fingfis securd"'with "its" phra p u is pp rt d t its outer 'e'nd'to post 62 ontheplatela.'(Figure ends to permit movement of the free end walls of the-stack by substantially equal amounts in opposite 'directions'upon a changei'n pressure: In the eventthestack 24 "consists of only two capsules 25 and I25, as in the illustrated"em-' bodimentof the invention, it is conve'nient'to provide"eachcapsule'withfa center post 26 and IZS-adjustablj; "clamped within the central bracket 23 by'bolt's 21 so as to locatethe two diaphragm symmetrically with respect to 'the axisof a common piniorr I'I. Ihe free walls of the diapliragm 'capsii lesflw and I25 car'ry cen i tra1 b 0ss'e"s"28 and 12 8 to which1i111ks"29 and i29 ere pivotally connected at 30 and I30. 'I he bariend's of the links 29 and I29 transmit the moveirie'ht"of the-diaphragm cap sule to tern""" perait'urecompensetor 3I "and I3I on rocking shafts'32 and I32 carryinggear" sectors 33 and I33'.*-

A pref erredform of temperature comperisa toris shown in detail in Figure-'5 and comprises a bimetallic member or strip 134 mounted ion] a cylindrical arrn 135 w th'c eehd and carryingf'a l iead I36 at the other end, The link I291 r is attached 't'o the headI36 at a pivot axis I3'I. Thecylindrical arm I35 is adjustably clamped" in a fpost 'I3 8;by a screw I351; The post I38, in turniis heldin aboss I49 on'the rocking shaft: I32, 'Ilriearrangemerit' is preferably such; that the distance of the' cylindrical arm 135; 'from the rocking shaft I32 is variabl j'without dis turbariceof the harsher relationship of the 151 A metallic member I34 with respect to the rocking shaft I3 2L For'this purpose post i I38' is provided with a flat surface portion I4] agai'n st whicha set screw I IZ in the boss l lll'bea rslj A o 7 w further arm I43 secured to the post I38 has In I rig h a slot on its free end which engages a pin I44. or setti g is accomplished" by t actuating mechanism inside the instrument housing bya setting knob 18 on a shaft 19 carrying a pinion 80. The pinion'8tl meshes with a ring gear 81 on the plate l8. Turning of the knob causes the actuating mechanism to turn in the case and, with it, the large pointer 60 moves relatively to the main dial 84.

The required amount of setting of the mechanism for, a given change in the atmospheric pressure. is ascertained ata barometric dial 82 visiblethrough a window 83in the fixed dial 84 over which the pointers 60, H and 11 move. The barometric dial 82 is secured to a larger gear 85 meshing with ,a pinion 86 on a gear 81. The gear 81 meshes with the setting pinion 80. Thus, turning of the knob 18 causes the barometric dial 82 to move behind the window 83 by reason of the gear drive 80, 81, 86, 85 and also causes the entire actuating mechanism to turnby means of the gear drive 80, 8!.

The operation of the pressure sensitive mechanism requireslittle explanation. Changes in the pressure ofthe air acting on the diaphragm capsules cause the diaphragms to expand and contract, as the case may be. The substantially straight-line movement of the diaphragm is converted into rotary movement by the rocking shafts, and the gear mechanism magnifies the rotation of the rocking shafts and transmits it to the pointers.

It is quite apparent from an inspection of the illustration alone that symmetrical arrangement of the various elements of the mechanism results in perfect counterbalancing of the masses. It is, of course, good practice to construct the various shafts and pivoted assemblies in such a way as to provide for substantial balance .of these shafts and assemblies about their respective axes, without increasing the moving masses by the addition of counterweights. However, any unbalance which exists is automatically compensated. Referring to Figure 3, for example, and assuming that the gear sectors 33 and I33 were slightly, but equally unbalanced, it is quite apparent that any such unbalance about the rocking shaft I32 tending to cause turning of the pinion 41 in one direction is opposed by an equal tendency of the rocking shaft 32 to turn the pinion 41 in the opposite direction. It is thus seen that the symmetric arrangement of equally shaped and equally dimensioned elements of the actuating mechanism inherently produces balance, both static as wellas dynamic, without the aid of the additional counter-balancing masses which are customarily attached to pivoted assemblies in instruments of this type.

However, the beneficial results of the novel arrangement go beyond the problems of balancing or the elimination of special weights or masses for the purpose of counter-balancing.

Referring again to Figure 3 it is easily seen that the illustrated assembly lends itself to the automatic elimination of play or lost motion between the diaphragm capsules 24 proper and the pinion 41. It is practically impossible to produce two diaphragm capsules which expand and contract with such microscopic precision as to cause turning of the two sectors 33 and I33 in such a way that the same amount of play occurs between the teeth of the sectors and those of the pinion 41 at all points of the pressure range. It is thus apparent that minute inequalities in the characteristics of the two diaphragms result in no appreciable lost motion or play between the diaphragms and the pinion, since one diaphragm invariably lags behind the other, though ever so slightly; Assuming, however, that the two diaphragm capsules are so perfectly matched as to turn both rocking shafts and sectors with such microscopic-evenness that there is still ascertainable play within the actuating mechanism, it is obvious that this can readily be remedied by mounting one of the diaphragm capsules so that it lags slightly behind the other.

This lag should always exceed the maximum disparity of movement of the two diaphragm systems throughout their operating range and the resultant preloading should be at least equal to simple pressure indicating instrument of utmost accuracy covering a range of pressure, or altitude, heretofore unattained with a single instrument of comparable size.

Obviously the principles of thisinvention may be applied'to other forms of instruments. In

this connection numerous additions, omissions,

substitutions and other changes may be made without departure from the spirit and the essence of the present invention.

What is claimed is: V l. A balanced movement, particularly for a wide range sensitive pressure responsive instrument comprising a central support; a pair of diaphragm capsules mounted onsaid support for expansion and contraction in opposite directions for a given pressure change; a central pinion mounted on said support; a pair of gear sectors meshing with said pinion; a rocking shaft for each of said sectors; and a link pivotally connecting the movable Wall of each capsule with its respective rocking shaft to turn the rocking shafts in opposite directions on a change inpressure acting on the capsules, one of said diaphragm.. capsules lagging the other of said diaphragm capsules to automatically eliminate lost motion? between said diaphragm capsules and said central pinion.

2. A balanced movement, particularly for a wide range sensitive altitude responsive instrument comprising, a mounting plate having a central support; a first diaphragm capsule mounted on said support for expansion and contraction of its free wall in a direction substantially parallel to the mounting plate; a pinion centrally mounted with respect to said mounting plate, the pinion axis being substantially normal to the mounting 1 plate; a first gear sector meshing with said pinion;

a first rocking shaft carrying said first gear sector, the rocking shaft axis being substantially parallel with said pinion axis; a first linkage connecting the free wall of said capsule with said rocking 

